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Law reminder – New Net Metering Law Becomes Effective In September 2025
Category: Maine
Related Categories: Electric, Net Energy Billing (NEB), Net Metering, New Law, Renewable Energy/Clean Energy
As reported previously, Gov. Mills signed a new net metering bill in the State of Maine. The new law goes into effect beginning September 23, 2025.
House Bill LD1777 makes significant changes to net energy billing (NEB) in Maine. restrict net billing for front of the meter distributed generation (DG) resources with NEB agreements on 12/31/25 or earlier.
The new law among other things:
- directs the Governor’s Energy Office (GEO) to propose to MEPUC a successor to the NEB program for front of the meter DG resources;
- directs MEPUC to require T&D utilities to reconcile NEB costs in a rate year beginning 1/1/26;
- require an NEB tariff rate for DG resources of 3-5MW equal to the current tariff rate for 2026 and increasing by 2.25% annually thereafter on 1/1;
- require an NEB tariff rate for DG resources of < 3MW equal to the standard offer service rate applicable to the customer on 12/31/24 plus 75% of the effective transmission and distribution rate in effect on that date for the rate class including the smallest commercial customers of the investor-owned utilities for 2026 and increasing by 2.25% annually thereafter on 1/1;
- require that MEPUC’s competitive solicitations to procure energy or RECs from DG resources be restricted to resources participating in NEB for which 75% or less of the bill credits associated with the resource are not allocated to a customer of or subscriber to the resource;
- establish an NEB Project Charge, to be a monthly fee determined by MEPUC that a T&D utility must use to offset NEB distribution costs that would otherwise be paid by ratepayers;
- set the initial NEB Project charges, beginning 1/1/26, at the following values per-kW of capacity; (i) 3-5MW DG resources – $6.00; (ii) 1-3MW resources – $2.80; and (iii) < 1MW resources – $0.00; and
- direct MEPUC to initiate a rulemaking to establish NEB consumer protection standards, including: (i) prohibiting project sponsors or operators from retaining customer payment for expired, unused credits; (ii) requiring T&D utilities to provide project sponsors or owners with the customer’s usage and billing information needed to administer a customer’s NEB arrangement; and (iii) prohibiting residential customers from simultaneously participating in more than one NEB arrangement.
